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Idaho Mountain Touring expands with second location

BOISE, ID (BRAIN) — Multi-sport retailer Idaho Mountain Touring has opened a second location in Meridian, just west of its downtown Boise store. The 6,000-square-foot Meridian store, which opened in June, is a full-service shop, carrying bicycles from Giant and Trek.

Owner Chris Haunold opened Idaho Mountain Touring in 1984 to cater to a young but growing market of outdoor recreationalists, including mountain and road cyclists. Haunold saidthat a lot has changed since he opened his store nearly 30 years ago.

"People would come in and laugh at the first mountain bikes," Haunold said of the early years. "Everyone thought they were toys and didn’t know what to do with them."

But now, due in part to Boise’s easy access to miles of trails, mountain biking has become mainstream in the small city. Sophap Channprasut, who has worked for Haunold for more than eight years, manages the Meridian store. “We have very low turnover at IMT,” said Haunold. “So this was an opportunity for a dedicated member of our team to move up and take on more responsibility.”